In 2015 there were 4,803 craft breweries in the US, by 2021 there were 9,118. Equally important is the ideological shift in the beer market they signify. Big beer singularly seeks and values profit. Craft beer, while also motivated by profit, equally values community, quality and independence. - The Conversation
Disney is, famously, a vast corporate content farm, with all artistic choices carefully examined by an assembly line of executives, marketers, focus groups, etc. Whereas Miyazaki’s vision is absolutely his own. Despite its global success, Studio Ghibli has remained quirky and unpredictable. - The New York Times
"Unfortunately, Brexit seems to be good at putting up barriers. Brexit red tape means that bringing in skilled workers the UK economy desperately needs is more difficult, and it also means that exporting artistic success is harder and more expensive." - The New European
In 2023, U.S. state legislatures managed to surpass the number of anti-LGBTQ+ bills that were proposed 2022—i.e., what took lawmakers 365 days to achieve last year took has taken a month this year. Indeed, these bills are popping up faster than a game of transphobic Whac-A-Mole. - American Theatre
It ain’t always pretty, but it is fascinating. As the policy tide turns to the end of single-family zoning and looser housing development regulations, Houston is a vision of the future. Other cities have a lot to learn from its successes and failures. - Fast Company
"Jonathan Miller ... once sent me a New Year's Day card urging me to cease my 'foul pork scratchings' and told an interviewer that ideally directors should be reviewed by their peers rather than 'nonentities like Michael Billington'." - The Guardian
"The tension at the school, now known as Mills College at Northeastern University, reflects the challenges that colleges face when merging campus cultures and balancing the loyalties of students, faculty, and alumni." - The Boston Globe
Forty years ago, Peter Brooks produced a pathbreaking study, Reading for the Plot, which was part of the so-called narrative turn in literary criticism. Narratology, as it became known, spread swiftly to other disciplines: law, psychology, philosophy, religion, anthropology and so on. - London Review of Books
The defection of Gustavo Dudamel from L.A. to conduct the New York Philharmonic reflects more than a switch in energy and show business muscle; the Venezuela-born conductor, many feel, also embodies inclusion at an inspirational level. - Deadline
A couple found scripts and call sheets in their attic and gave them to an auctioneer - but health issues related to original Chewbacca actor Peter Mayhew's height, his widow said, had made it impossible for him to get the attic cleared when they moved. - BBC
Partly, Ticketmaster might have (slightly - let's be real) improved since the Taylor Swift tickets debacle. Also, Beyoncé fans shared tips, tricks, secrets and Swedish translation apps across social media. - Washington Post
Most people think it's great to have a library, grocery, school, and restaurants/pubs nearby, right? Well. "Recent attempts to ... make cities more walkable have led to waves of weird conspiracy theories about an encroaching police state." - Vice
"If words like 'nuanced,' 'subtle,' 'circumspect' or 'introspective' garner leading men Oscar attention (how else do we explain Colin Farrell’s nod?), female protagonists are often lauded for falling apart." - The New York Times
The search results are full of ads. You can’t come up with the right string of words to get more useful results. The reviews, both on the retailer’s site and on third-party websites you’ve mostly never heard of, seem fake. - The Atlantic
